It was on another visit to the Arizona road course where future Corvette and Cadillac Racing legend Johnny O’Connell was introduced to NPTI in the early 1990s through Kastner’s eye for spotting young talent.
Kasnter’s eye for driver talent helped the likes of Johnny O’Connell get their breaks. Image via Marshall Pruett Archives

“Kas was responsible for what was probably my biggest break,” said O’Connell, whose IndyCar aspirations were fading. “I’d just moved to Phoenix to work at the Bondurant Driving School. NPTI was testing there at Firebird with Geoff Brabham and Bob Earl. I went over to say hello to some of the crew guys I knew when one of the engineers asked me if I’d like to get some laps in the next day as Geoff had to leave early, and that Kas had been wanting to give me a look.

“At that time, he was to sports car racing what Roger Penske was and is to IndyCar. Such a positive and almost fatherly type figure to me that I didn’t want to let down. Always both kind and encouraging to me throughout my career. Kas was one of racing’s greats.”

The Leitzinger family felt Kastner’s influence in IMSA’s GTU category where its various Nissan models delivered major victories and championships for the brand.
No way Leitzinger was going to be able to under-quote to run a GTU program on Kastner’s watch. Image via Marshall Pruett Archives

“In 1988, Kas Kastner and Frank Honsowetz asked for a quote to run a GTU effort for the 1989 IMSA season,” Bob Leitzinger said. “Many hours of work later, Kas asked for my budget number. Kas looked at it, and said ‘No! That is not enough, we will go with my number!’ He was one great guy to work for, and a real friend.”

With heavyweight Nissan factory programs running in three of IMSA’s four top classes, Raffauf was in awe of Kastner’s capabilities.

“Kas was a quiet but firm leader, a pleasure to work with in his dealings with IMSA, crafty and wise, and someone who would never give up,” he said. “One of the most driven individuals, determined to succeed, (that) IMSA’s paddock has ever seen over the years.

“As the team grew from a smaller Devendorf Electramotive group into, at that time, the titanic NPTI organization, with over 250 employees designing, building and developing Nissan race cars for both for IMSA and overseas, Kas managed the growth and success with ease and a calm approach that brought the entire organization to a new level as a whole. There was never any drama with Kas, just a determination to get the job done and succeed. He quietly motivated the Nissan brand, group and team to get it done and then tell the world about it. And that they did.”

For Moss, Kastner was the embodiment of everything that made Electramotive, NPTI, and Nissan a powerhouse presence in the sport.

“Kas brought increased budget, full-time pro drivers, the latest technology, moved Don out of the cockpit to direct team management and technical development, got Trevor Harris on board full-time,” he said. “Later, with an assist from Trevor Harris, he got Geoff Brabham on board and paid him well enough to stay. Later he enabled us to add Chip Robinson to the team. In short, Kas saved our collective asses and made us winners again.

“Kas had many sides. He connected well with the hands-on shop and crew guys, had a sense of humor, was hard-assed when necessary, respected by all, loved by many. He had already had a substantial career going back to the U.S. Triumph racing program; the Nissan GTP program was, in my opinion, the capstone on his long motorsports career.”

Nissan, IMSA